CHAPTER VI 

 THE JEWEL IN THE TOAD'S HEAD 



TO what jewel or precious stone was Shakespeare 

 alluding when he makes the exiled Duke in "As You 

 Like It " (after praising his rough life in the forest of 

 Arden, and declaring that adversity has its compensations), 

 exclaim : 



" The toad, ugly and venomous, 

 Wears yet a precious jewel in his head " ? 



No doubt the unprejudiced reader supposes when he 

 reads this passage that there is some stone or stone-like 

 body in the head of the toad which has a special beauty, 

 or else was believed to possess magical or medicinal 

 properties. And it is probable that Shakespeare himself 

 did suppose that such a stone existed. As a matter of 

 fact there is no stone or " jewel " of any kind in the head 

 of the common toad nor of any species of toad common 

 or rare. This is a simple and certain result of the careful 

 examination of the heads of innumerable toads, and is not 

 merely " common knowledge," but actually the last word 

 of the scientific expert. In these days of " nature study " 

 writers familiar with toads and frogs and kindred beasts 

 have puzzled over Shakespeare's words, and suggested that 

 he was really referring to the beautiful eyes of the toad, 

 which are like gems in colour and brilliance. 



This, however, is not the case. Shakespeare himself 

 was simply making use of what was considered to be 



